Before trying to find a mesothelioma-treatment related clinical trial, be sure you know what to expect from clinical trials. If patients don’t have a realistic understanding of what clinical trials involve and the potentially limited benefits, they can easily be disappointed.
Once the informed decision is made to explore clinical trial options, there are several ways to proceed.
- Discuss your interest in clinical trials with your doctor
- Search the clinical trial lists and databases
- Enroll in a clinical trial matching service
Talk to Your Doctor
Your doctor is probably aware of most of the clinical trials in your area that are recruiting patients in your situation, and he or she knows you well enough to know if you qualify for a particular trial or not. Moreover, your doctor can help you develop a realistic outlook on the merits of clinical trials in general, and the pros and cons of any specific trial.
Finding Clinical Trial Lists and Databases
While your doctor is probably aware of the majority of local clinical trials for mesothelioma treatments, he or she may not be aware of absolutely every one for which you might qualify. You may want to check the clinical trial lists and databases yourself.
If you do your own Internet search, you’ll discover searching for “mesothelioma clinical trials” yields hundreds of thousands of hits, the majority of which are general information articles posted on law firm Web sites. You’ll also encounter abundant information on trials that have long ago closed to new participants. The few additional legitimate and up-to-date clinical trial listings we were able to find seemed to draw their data from one or more of the top five sites listed below.
Cancer411 – Sponsored by two private non-profit foundations, this Web site allows you to search for mesothelioma-related trials in your home state or any other. Although it allows you to enter additional search criteria, it’s probably unnecessary.
Cancer.Gov – This National Cancer Institute database of more than 6,000 active trials can be searched by type of trial as well as by zip code and travel distance.
Cancer Trials Help – A service of the Coalition of Cancer Cooperative Groups, this Web site requires you to respond to a short questionnaire to help you find an applicable clinical trial. For question number 4, you have to choose “lung” cancer, and you will later have the opportunity to specify mesothelioma.
CenterWatch Clinical Trials Listing Service – CenterWatch is a medical information publishing company. Though they have an extensive listing of open clinical trials, it is not all-inclusive. You’ll want to also check other lists. A nice feature is that in addition to having the choice of selecting only mesothelioma-related trials, you can also select your state or country to narrow the results to trials in your area.
ClinicalTrials.Gov – This service of the U.S. National Institutes of Health offers a simple and flexible search screen where you can search on criteria of your choice. Your best bet is to enter “mesothelioma AND yourstate” to find local trials. (Note that “AND” must be capitalized.)
Clinical Trial Matching Services
The power and convenience of the Internet has spawned new Web-based business models that help sponsors of clinical trials find and enroll participants. Some of these may charge a fee to sponsors for listing their studies or they may receive a fee for each participant that enrolls through the service.
The various services work in different ways. Some allow you to search listings and apply for enrollment on their site. Others may require you to register first, providing them with information on your condition that helps them match you to studies you’re eligible for. When you register, if they have no current trials fitting your situation, they can notify you when a new trial is announced that would be applicable to you.
American Cancer Society - The ACS Clinical Trials Matching Service requires you to register and provide information on your personal situation and medical condition. It then returns a list of open trials matching your criteria. Each time you log on thereafter, you’ll be presented with an updated list including any new trials that have been announced. For any trial you’re interested in, you can contact the study sponsor directly, or call the American Cancer Society toll free number to discuss it with a specialist.
EmergingMed – Though you can search this private company’s clinical trial listings without registering, it doesn’t give you a “mesothelioma” selection, and searching for lung cancer yields over 600 results. But by registering and completing a detailed questionnaire (which a caregiver can do for you), you can obtain results specific to mesothelioma. You can also register to receive updates by email when new, applicable trials are listed.
Acurian - This company provides a wide variety of patient recruitment services to clinical trial sponsors, including a clinical trial matching service. It uses the CenterWatch database, but does not provide a “mesothelioma” option for searching clinical trial listings, so you have to register. Though registering requires entering quite a bit of personal information, Acurian has a very detailed and ethical privacy policy.
TrialX – This unique service tells you how many trial results you’re going to find even before you launch the search. When the results are displayed, you can then fill in the answers to some key questions and it eliminates any trials you’re not eligible for. By registering, you can also contact clinical trial sponsors to enroll, link to a Personal Health Record service, and receive email alerts when new matching clinical trials are announced.
Regional Cancer Centers – Each of the National Cancer Institute’s regional cancer centers is constantly involved in numerous clinical trials at any given time. Simply find the cancer center nearest you, and enter “clinical trials” in the center’s Web site search window.
Selecting a Trial to Apply For
After doing your first search for mesothelioma clinical trials, you quickly discover that it seems to require at least two years of medical school to understand the eligibility criteria. If you encounter any trials that seem interesting, print the trial information or copy down the Internet address for your doctor to review for you.
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